Advertisement

UCLA’s Beech Listed in Critical Condition After Fall at Fraternity

Share

Mike Beech, a freshman football player at UCLA from Newport Beach, was listed in critical condition Thursday night in the UCLA Medical Center after undergoing 14 hours of surgery for head injuries suffered in a fall from a second-story balcony of a fraternity house.

Beech, a former star at Newport Harbor High School, was rushed to the medical center following the 12- to 15-foot fall, which occured at 12:40 a.m. Thursday during a fraternity party, a UCLA campus police spokesman said.

Beech, 19, underwent surgery for contusions of the brain, a school spokesman said. He also underwent reconstructive surgery to repair multiple fractures of his skull and face.

Advertisement

According to John Pontarelli, a medical center spokesman, surgery began at about 4 a.m. and was completed just after 6 p.m.

Dave Keating, a teammate of Beech’s, said his condition “looked a lot more promising” after surgery.

“They (Beech’s family) are real happy with the latest scan,” Keating said. “They (the doctors) were able to secure more of the brain and control the hemorrhaging.”

UCLA Campus Police Lt. Carl Ross, quoting from a report filed on the incident, said witnesses claimed that Beech had been drinking, but were not certain if he was drinking at the party or before he arrived.

Witnesses said in the report that Beech was dancing on the balcony of the Beta Theta Pi fraternity house at 581 Gayley Ave. when he fell.

Keating, however, said Beech was dancing inside and went to the balcony “to get some air.”

“I guess he just slipped, but nobody saw what happened,” Keating said.

Fraternity president Mark Towery would not comment on the incident, but said members of the fraternity gave Beech first aid and called paramedics.

Advertisement

Danny Thompson, a junior fullback from Huntington Beach High School, said Bruin Coach Terry Donahue made an announcement about Beech’s status to the team following the afternoon spring practice session.

“Most of the guys had already heard about it,” Thompson said. “Coach Donahue didn’t have any details, but he told us to keep praying for Mike.

“I went over the hospital after practice and talked to his parents. They were pretty shook up. But nobody really seemed to know what happened. I wasn’t at the party, but I heard there were a lot of people there.”

Matt Stevens, a former star quarterback at Fountain Valley High who led the Bruins to a Rose Bowl victory over Iowa, said Beech is one of the most popular players on the team.

“He is well known and well liked,” Stevens said. “When Coach Donahue told us how serious the accident was, the whole team was shocked.

“I was his host on his recruiting trip here and got to know Mike and his parents pretty well. I talked briefly with his parents following surgery, and they were taking it as well as could be.”

Advertisement

Beech redshirted his freshman season, but had been taking part in spring drills the last two weeks.

Beech, a 6-foot 7-inch, 260-pound offensive tackle, was an All-American lineman at Newport Harbor in 1984, and was the starting center on the Sailors’ basketball team.

Advertisement